Year of Our Lord 1943: Christian Humanism in an Age of Crisis

In the early 1940s, Christian intellectuals recognized the need for a moral and spiritual renewal in Western democracies following the Second World War. This book explores the ideas of five key figures, including Jacques Maritain, T.S. Eliot, C.S. Lewis, W.H. Auden, and Simone Weil, who argued that a Christian understanding of human power and limitations was necessary for the renewal of education and the preparation of democratic societies for global economic and political dominance.

Format: Hardback
Length: 280 pages
Publication date: 27 September 2018
Publisher: Oxford University Press Inc

By early 1943, it had become increasingly evident that the Allies would emerge victorious in the Second World War. Simultaneously, a growing realization among Christian intellectuals on both sides of the Atlantic emerged that the soon-to-be-conquered nations lacked the cultural and moral preparedness necessary to sustain their triumph. A war achieved through technological superiority merely set the stage for a post-war society dominated by technocrats. These Christian intellectuals, including figures such as Jacques Maritain, T. S. Eliot, C. S. Lewis, W. H. Auden, and Simone Weil, sought to articulate a sober and reflective critique of their own culture while also outlining a plan for the moral and spiritual regeneration of their respective countries in the aftermath of the war.

In his book, "The Year of Our Lord 1943," Alan Jacobs delves into the poetry, novels, essays, reviews, and lectures of these five central figures, exploring their imaginative portrayals of the diverse pathways now facing Western democracies. Working largely independently and unaware of each other's ideas, the five intellectuals developed a remarkably consistent argument that the sole means by which democratic societies could prepare for their global economic and political dominance was through a renewal of education rooted in a Christian understanding of the power and limitations of human beings.

"The Year of Our Lord 1943" stands as the first work to bring together the ideas of these five intellectuals, shedding light on why they all believed it imperative to restore Christianity to a prominent role in the renewal of Western democracies during a time of unparalleled global conflict.

Weight: 426g
Dimension: 215 x 155 x 23 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780190864651